Disclaimer: see a previous chapter.

A/N: Purple Hyacinth – Please forgive me

Dragon's Desire

Chapter 7

"Aya, I'm sorry. But this just isn't working for me." Aya's heart leapt to his throat and he held his breath. "My phone bill is astronomical." Wufei waited to see if he was going to get any response but he was met with dead silence. It was so quiet he wondered if Aya was still on the phone. "Hello?"

"I-I'm here."

"Isn't your phone bill cutting into your wallet too?"

"Yes but….I don't mind. I didn't realize it had become such a problem for you."

Wufei heard Aya's voice become small and he smiled. I really shouldn't keep teasing him like this. He really sounds upset. "Well I mind. So I'm sorry Aya but……I'm afraid I'm just going to have to visit you for a week."

"What!"

Wufei held the phone away from his ear and cringed. He heard a litany of curses streaming from the phone and he couldn't help but laugh. When they both regained their composure, Wufei placed the phone back against his ear and continued the conversation as if the outburst never happened.

"How does a month from now sound? Think you will have forgiven me by then?"

"Hmph. This is going to cost you, you know that right?"

Wufei smiled. "I'm counting on it, Aya."

Aya was thankful he was alone right now and no one could see the blush he could feel burning his cheeks. He sat back down in the chair he vacated when he began cursing at Wufei and ran his fingers through his hair as he leaned back and stared at the ceiling. He really wanted to see Wufei and the prospect of seeing him for a whole week did make him smile.

"Where will you stay?"

"I've already talked to Maxwell and I'm going to stay with them for a few days and the rest I'll be in a hotel." Aya nodded to the arrangements, forgetting he was on the phone. "I don't expect you to take off work and entertain me 24-7, but I would like you to keep your free time open for me."

"I think I can manage a few days off work."

"Good. So….am I forgiven yet?"

Aya chuckled. "Not yet."

"I'll have to work on that."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Three days later Aya was working in the backroom when he heard Yohji yell his name in alarm. He quickly raced out into the store expecting the worst, only to find a massive amount of balloons in the middle of the store with Yohji gaping in awe.

"Yohji! What the hell is going on?"

"Uh…."

"I have a delivery for Mr. Fujimiya."

Aya narrowed his eyes at the poor delivery man who held out a small blue envelope with a sigh. Aya slowly approached the man and took the card, but looked at the man as if he were insane when he tried to give him the handle for the balloons.

"Look, somebody has to take them. If I let go they'll be all over your store."

Aya took the handle and followed the numerous thick green strings upwards to gaze at the balloons above his head. They were dark lavender and seemed to be arranged in a cylinder type shape. Aya stared at the obnoxious purple tower, his brows furrowed. What's familiar about this? Why should I know what this means?

Aya walked over and held out his hand to Yohji who wisely kept his mouth shut and took the balloons. Aya opened the envelope and found a letter from Wufei.

Dearest Aya,

What do you send to someone to ask for forgiveness when that person is a florist? Well, you're looking at it. It's my version of a purple hyacinth. I made sure to specifically request green string to give it the look of having stems/leaves.

I wish I could see your face when you lay eyes on the balloons. I'm sure it's priceless. I'll just have to find other ways to shock you when I'm in town so I won't feel cheated.

I'm not really sure what one does with so many balloons but I'm sure you'll find something to do with them.

I can't wait to see you.

Wufei

Aya smiled as he folded the note and placed it back in the envelope. Then he looked up at his "hyacinth". What am I going to do with all these balloons? Only kids….. An idea suddenly came to him and he looked at Yohji.

"We're closing the store."

"What!"

"We have a delivery to make."

They used the flower shop's delivery van and carefully shoved all the balloons in, only loosing two. Yohji knew better than to question Aya further, so he sat in the passenger seat and waited to reach their destination.

When Aya brought the van to a stop Yohji just sat there, speechless. Aya was bringing the balloons to the hospital? Is he going to give them all to Aya? What good will it do a comatose girl?

"Kudoh!"

Yohji jumped out of the van and rushed to help Aya. Yohji followed Aya since the redhead knew exactly where he was going. They stopped at a nurse's station and Yohji watched in fascination as Aya smiled at the older woman who greeted him as she would her own son, giving him a quick hug and a pat on the cheek.

The nurse looked like she was going to cry and pointed down a hallway. Aya nodded and started walking with Yohji in tow. Yohji smiled at the nurse who just smiled and waved at him as Aya pulled him along. Their destination was the children's wing. He and Aya spent the next three hours passing out purple balloons and playing with the kids. As Yohji watched Aya talk with a little boy, he realized just how little he knew about the man. Is this Chang's influence? This is a side of Aya none of us could have guessed. Why do you hide this person Aya?

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Wufei arrived a little before lunch on Sunday. He'd driven straight to Duo's with the intention of dropping off his bags and coming back later to visit and unpack but the pair blocked his escape and cornered him for several hours, grilling him about his relationship with Aya.

"Maxwell, I have told you all I'm going to tell you so you might as well stop asking."

"But 'Fei, I don't understand---"

"Duo, Wufei is respecting Aya's privacy and I think you should too."

"Thank you, Ken."

"Besides, Aya would slice him to ribbons if he let any details out."

"Babe, I wouldn't----"

"I beg your pardon?"

Duo groaned at the sound of the challenging voice and he slid his arm around Ken protectively. "He doesn't know anything 'Fei so put the pride back in your pocket."

"Did I say something wrong?"

"No. It's just that the dragon here has a very sensitive pride and the thought of someone besting him in one of his specialties brings out his nasty side."

"You have experience with a katana, Wufei?"

"From the age of six I trained in my family's dojo. I became a master in several martial arts disciplines and a master swordsman."

"Really? Do you still maintain your skills?"

Wufei shrugged and stood up, heading for the door. "I think I could hold my own."

Duo leaned in and whispered into his husband's ear. "Don't let him fool you. He's as deadly today as he was in the military."

"Maxwell."

"Tell me I'm lying." Duo stood and joined his best friend at the door. Wufei just replied with a raised eyebrow. "Yeah, that's what I thought. Alright man, we'll see you later tonight I guess. You've got the key so feel free to come and go as you please."

"Thank you, Maxwell. And thank you, Ken. I'll see you later in the evening."

Later that night as Ken ad Duo lay together in bed, the subject of Aya and Wufei was brought up again.

"The longer this thing with Aya and 'Fei goes on, the more of a chance I think they have."

"Yeah."

"What? You don't sound too confident. What do you know?"

"It's just that Aya…..he hates not being in control. And I can tell Wufei is the same way. How is that going to translate if they ever reach the physical stage?"

"Never thought about that. But 'Fei seems to handle Aya really well so I'm sure they can work it out."

"I hope so. I just want him to be happy."

Duo kissed the top of Ken's head. "Just leave everything to 'Fei. He's very serious about Aya and won't give up without a fight."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

When Wufei arrived at the Koneko, he was hoping to find Aya waiting for him. Instead, he was greeted by a smiling Yohji and an empty flower shop.

"Chang, welcome! Aya said you would be stopping in today."

"Hello, Yohji. Where is Aya?"

The lanky blonde waived off Wufei's comment and leaned back on the counter, magazine in hand. "He just stepped out to make a delivery."

Wufei walked over and stood at the counter, a slight frown on his face. "Did he say how long he would be?"

"He shouldn't be too long. The only reason he had to go instead of me is because he won't let me near the delivery sight." He saw Wufei's raised eyebrows and smirked. "There's a salon on Kohana Street and all the women who work there are hot and the last time I made a delivery there I was delayed by a few hours."

Wufei chuckled and turned to look out at the store. He stood there imaging Aya tending o the flowers and ignoring drooling hormonal schoolgirls. Between Ken and Duo he'd heard enough stories to get a good picture o the frenzied scene.

"So. Balloons, huh? Very original."

Wufei smiled and turned to Yohji. "Did he look like he wanted to murder me?"

"No. I think confusion won out over everything else."

"What happened to them?"

Yohji thought about telling Wufei about the hospital but then it might lead to other questions that he knew better than to answer. Then he saw the delivery van drive past through the front window. "I think I'll let Aya tell you. I just saw him drive past." Yohji saw the sparkle ignite in the deep black eyes and he chuckled. "Been awhile, Chang?"

Wufei just gave Yohji a knowing smile. Soon enough Aya appeared n the Koneko and Wufei didn't give him a chance. He walked right up to him and hugged him tight. He was surprised when Aya hugged him back immediately. Wufei smiled and whispered into the crimson hair.

"I missed you."

"Me too."

Aya pulled back and looked over at Yohji. "Can you handle the last hour without me?"

"I think I can manage."

Aya nodded and returned his gaze to Wufei. "I'll be down in half an hour. Keep an eye on him."

"Yes sir."

Wufei chuckled, Yohji scoffed and Aya left to get changed, a small smirk pulling at the corner of his mouth. Wufei returned to stand at the counter with Yohji. The two remained silent for awhile, Wufei waiting for Yohji to ask what was on his mind. He could tell the man wasn't reading his magazine and it just wasn't in the lanky assassin's nature to be so quiet.

"How did you do it?"

"Do what?"

"How did you get him to start acting…..human?"

Wufei chuckled and bowed his head, rubbing the back of his neck. He liked Yohji and he understood what the man was trying to ask, but he didn't think Aya would appreciate them having the conversation. Not that he was willing to share all the details of his relationship either. On the contrary, he even kept most of the details from Maxwell. He'd always been a private man and being in a relationship wouldn't change that. Besides, Aya was his special treasure and giving out details would mean risking tarnishing his treasure.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Yohji. He seems the same to me."

Jade eyes narrowed. Who does he think he's kidding? "I've known Aya longer than you Chang and we both know you're full of shit. So just tell me. Hypnotism? Drugs? Electric shock therapy?"

Wufei rested his arms on the counter and leaned in, whispering conspiratorially. "Ok, I'll tell you. But you have to promise to keep it a secret." Yohji nodded his head and closed the gap between them so Wufei was whispering in his ear. Wufei just rolled his eyes at the assassin's eagerness. "I was patient, I listened to him and I accepted him for who he is."

Yohji pulled back and looked at Wufei as if he had just been shot. Wufei just smiled at the stunned reaction. He heard the sound of someone clearing their throat and he turned to see Aya standing there, glaring daggers at Yohji. The taller assassin actually blushed under the scrutiny and eventually looked away.

"Are you ready?"

Aya turned to look at Wufei and the angry look melted away, replaced with a content smile.

"Yes."

Wufei followed Aya back into the personal residence to leave by the back entrance where their cars were parked. Just as he was about to open the door and walk outside Aya whirled on Wufei, bringing the novelist up short.

"Before we leave….I wanted to say thank you."

Wufei smiled and took a step closer to Aya. "For what?" Aya looked off to the side and he seemed sad to Wufei. He reached out and lightly touched Aya's cheek and marveled at how quickly the pale cheek became rosy. Simply beautiful. "Aya? Is something wrong?"

A small smile appeared and Aya looked up at Wufei. "No, nothing's wrong. I just wanted to thank you for what you said back there to Yohji."

"I meant every word."

Aya just gazed into the onyx eyes that thrilled him and scared him at the same time with what they were saying to him. Aya closed the small distance between them and gave Wufei a tender kiss. By the time they broke the kiss, they had their arms around each other.

"Was that part of the thank you?"

"No. That was because I wanted to."

Wufei's heart was now pounding in his chest and he hoped his excitement wasn't too obvious to Aya. He hugged Aya to him tightly and spoke into the crimson tresses where his face was nestled.

"Thank you, Aya." A few moments later they headed out the door and something occurred to Wufei. "Aya, how did you hear what I said to Yohji? I was whispering in his ear."

Aya just gave him a smirk and Wufei marveled at the sparkle in those amethyst eyes. "My secret I'm afraid."

Wufei grabbed Aya's shoulder and spun him around bring their faces very close. "Secrets are my specialty, Aya. Why don't you just save yourself the trouble and tell me?"

Aya scoffed. "What would be the fun in that?"

Yohji listened to the exchange by the front door and he knew the answer to Chang's question. Aya had the most amazing hearing of anyone, no…any creature he'd ever encountered. The question he couldn't answer is why Aya had never revealed his true self after so many years? Was Chang right? Have I just not been paying attention? Yohji felt a pang of guilt in his chest. Maybe it's time I started listening instead of talking.

To be continued….

Sorry I took so long to update. I'm not too happy with this chapter but I have been assured that it's just me being too critical. I'm sure you will let me know the truth dear reader. I really like the next chapter though. It has glances into Wufei's and Aya's dates during the week. And something major happens when the whole group decides to attend a festival. Wufei gets hurt, Aya cries….it's all so dramatic! Until then people…..